The present invention relates to a method and apparatus for injecting a fluid, in particular a slurry of cuttings from a well drilling operation, into a well. The method and apparatus of the present invention may be applied in, but are not limited to, the disposal of drilling muds and drilling cuttings prepared in the form of a liquid slurry.
The drilling of an oil or gas well, for example a subsea well, results in the formation of small fragments of rock and other matter, known as cuttings, from the various formations through which the well is drilled. The cuttings are removed from the well as they are formed by the drill bit by being entrained in a drilling mud pumped down the well and returned to the surface vessel or platform. The cuttings are typically recovered from the drilling mud by a separation process and the mud reused in the well operations. In the past, at offshore locations, it has been common practice to dispose of the cuttings separated from the drilling mud in this way by dumping them in the sea. This practice has proven acceptable in the past, as the environmental impact from the negligible amounts of entrained oil based mud in the cuttings was low. Additionally, many companies have changed their practice to use synthetic drilling mud that is environmentally friendly.
Recently, however, it has become favoured to employ oil based drilling muds, as such mud formulations offer a number of advantages. For example, oil based muds improve the stability of the well bore, improve the performance of the drill bit by providing better lubrication and removal of cuttings as they are formed, and reduce the torque generated in the drill string during use. For these reasons, oil based drilling muds have been finding increasing use. While offering advantages during the drilling operation, the oil based mud formulations present a problem with respect to disposal. Cutting separated from the oil based muds after recovery from the well are inevitably contaminated with the oil based formulation. Washing the cuttings has been attempted, but only removes the mud from the surface of the cuttings particles, leaving oil in the cracks and pores of the fragments. It is no longer possible to dispose of cuttings recovered from an offshore well using oil based drilling muds in the same manner as when water based muds are employed by simply pouring the cuttings into the sea, due to a damaging environmental impact, and corresponding environmental regulations.
Accordingly, it has been the practice to dispose of the cuttings by injecting them into a well and into subsurface formations. To facilitate this, it has been the practice to grind the cuttings and suspend them in a suitable liquid to form a pumpable slurry, which may then be injected into a subsurface formation through an annulus between adjacent casings in the well. This has been common practice in environmentally sensitive areas, such as the north slope of Alaska, for many years.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,942,929 discloses a method for the disposal and reclamation of drilling wastes, in which construction grade gravel is separated from drilling cuttings produced during well drilling operations. The solids that are not so recovered are formed as a slurry with the remaining clays, silts and spent drilling fluid and conducted to a second well, remote from the well being drilled, into which the slurry is injected. Centrifugal pumps or mechanical agitators are used to disperse the fine solids in the slurry to assist in the injection process.
A drill cutting disposal method and system is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,129,469. In the method and system disclosed, drill cuttings produced during well drilling operations are brought to the surface and separated from the drilling mud, mixed with a suitable liquid, such as sea water and the mixture subjected to grinding to form a slurry. The slurry may then be pumped into a selected zone of the well for disposal.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,341,882 discloses a method for the disposal of well drilling cuttings, in which the cuttings are solidified by combining the cuttings with water and blast furnace slag. The resulting mixture is injected into the annulus between two wellbore casings, where it solidifies to form a cement.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,255,745 describes a method and apparatus for providing a remotely operable connection to establish access to an annulus within a wellhead assembly. The apparatus requires a port in the wellhead assembly. A valve is positioned to seal with the port by remote means using a ramp assembly supported on a guide base positioned around the wellhead.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,884,715 discloses a method and apparatus for injecting cuttings into a well while drilling operations are in progress. Two embodiments are discussed in the disclosure. The first method requires a predrilled well bore to be bored adjacent to and extending away from the well being drilled. The predrilled well bore is used as a depository for the drilling cuttings produced from the well being drilled. The second embodiment requires an injection tube to be installed within the well being drilled alongside the casings set into the well, through which access can be gained to subsurface formations into which the cuttings may be injected. A further embodiment employs an annulus between adjacent casings in the well in order to gain access to underground formations. It is noted that the embodiments disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,884,715 relate to the injection of cuttings into a well having a wellhead accessible on land. While subsea operations are mentioned, little information is given regarding the injection of cuttings into subsea wells.
A subsea wellhead typically comprises a conductor pipe extending below the sea bed in the well, the upper portion of which extends from the well and forms a conductor housing. A high pressure housing is landed in the conductor housing, on which is typically mounted a blowout preventer (BOP) stack by means of a BOP guide funnel. Successively smaller casings are landed in the wellhead, suspended from casing hangers secured within the conductor pipe or the high pressure housing. A guide base is often employed, which comprises a structure extending around the wellhead and mounted to the conductor housing.
A subsea well injection system is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,085,277, for injecting unwanted slurries and other fluids arising from drilling or other downhole operations into a subsea well. The slurry or other fluid is injected through a drilling guide base positioned around the well on an underwater surface. The system employs a dedicated guide base, which comprises pipework on the guide base leading to a port in the conductor casing of the well, thus gaining access to the annulus between the conductor casing and the adjacent inner casing. A fail safe isolation valve is provided on the guide base and joined to the pipework. A coupling is provided to connect the isolation valve to a surface vessel or platform. The wellhead is modified to provide a port in the housing, in order to gain access to an annulus between casings within the well. With a single port in the outermost casing of the well, fluids may be injected into the outermost annulus of the well. If access is required to an inner annulus, similar ports are required in the casings disposed radially outwards of the inner annulus to provide a flow path to the pipework extending from the guide base.
In U.S. Pat. No. 5,339,912, there is disclosed a cuttings disposal system in which an injection adapter is employed to allow a slurry of cuttings to be injected into a well. The well, designated an xe2x80x9cinjection wellxe2x80x9d, has an inner and an outer wellhead housing with at least one casing hanger and a respective inner casing installed in the inner wellhead housing. The casing hanger is formed with a port through it, connecting the bore of the well with the annulus between the inner casing and the outer casing of the well. When it is desired to inject cuttings into the well, an injection adapter is landed in the wellhead so as to extend into the bore of the well, allowing a central bore in the injection adapter to connect, through a port in the side of the injection adapter body, with the port in the casing hanger. The central bore in the injection adapter is connected by pipework to a pump at the surface, by means of which a slurry of cuttings may be injected through the injection adapter and into the annulus in the well. It is noted that, with the injection adapter landed in the well, access to the well for conducting other operations is denied, until the cuttings injection operation is ceased and the injection adapter removed.
A cuttings injection wellhead system for use in subsea wells is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,662,169. The wellhead system employs a wellhead having a conductor casing, to which is mounted a conductor housing and around which a guide base is provided. A high pressure housing is landed in the conductor housing. The wellhead system comprises an extension to the conductor housing extending between the lower end of the conductor housing and the conductor casing. A port is formed in the conductor housing extension below the guide base, allowing access to the interior of the conductor housing. A similar extension is provided on the lower end of the high pressure housing, formed with a corresponding port aligned with the port in the conductor casing. An inner casing is suspended from a casing hanger disposed within the high pressure housing. The ports in the extensions to the conductor housing and high pressure housing provide access to the annulus around the inner casing, into which a slurry of drilling cuttings may be injected. The pipework necessary to connect with the port in the conductor housing extension depends from the guide base provided around the wellhead assembly. The wellhead system of U.S. Pat. No. 5,662,169 requires the use of a modified conductor housing and high pressure housing, both of which must be provided with extensions through which aligned ports must be bored. In addition, the system of U.S. Pat. No. 5,662,169 requires the use of a dedicated guide base with the necessary pipework and connections in order to allow cuttings injection to proceed.
In a paper entitled xe2x80x9cSubsea Cuttings Injection Guide Base Trialxe2x80x9d presented at the Offshore European Conference, Sep. 7 to 10, 1993, Ferguson et al. disclosed the results of field trials conducted to test a permanent guide base and wellhead assembly modified to allow cuttings injection. A modified permanent guide base was employed having a pipe connecting through the guide base to a port in an extension welded to the conductor housing of the wellhead. A similar extension was provided on the lower end of the high pressure housing, through which a port was formed to align with the port in the extension to the conductor housing and provide access to an inner annulus of the wellhead assembly. As with the system of U.S. Pat. No. 5,662,169, a dedicated guide base is required in this system in order to provide the possibility of cuttings injection, together with modifications to several of the wellhead components.
A similar cuttings injection system is disclosed by Saasen et al. in a paper entitled xe2x80x9cThe First Cuttings Injection Operation Worldwide in a Subsea Annulus: Equipment and Operational Experiencexe2x80x9d, presented at the SPE Annual Technical Conference and Exhibition, Sep. 27 to 30, 1998. Again, this system employs a modified guide base, required to be larger than conventional guide bases, through which access is gained to a port formed in the conductor housing. A similar port is provided in the high pressure housing, aligned with the port in the conductor housing, in order to access an annulus between the high pressure housing, and its associated casing, and a casing suspended from a casing hanger secured in the bore of the high pressure housing. Again, the system of Saasen et al. requires a modified, dedicated guide base to be provided in order to inject cuttings into an annulus within the wellhead assembly. Further, in the system of Saasen et al. seal cartridges are required to be provided within the conductor housing around the high pressure housing both above and below the ports in the conductor housing and high pressure housing, in order to avoid ingress of the cuttings slurry into the annulus between the conductor housing and the high pressure housing.
It is noted that the prior art teaches, in general, that it is required to employ a dedicated guide base in order to effect cuttings injection into a subsea wellhead. Further, the systems proposed required significant modifications to the components of the wellhead assembly in order to provide access to the annulus of choice within the well. In particular, a number of the prior art proposals require an access port to be formed in the wellhead assembly. There is clearly a need for a way to inject drilling cuttings into a well, while keeping the modifications required to the conventional or existing equipment to a minimum. Further, it would be most advantageous to be able to operate a cuttings injection procedure in a well without requiring a guide base to be present. It would be of further advantage if the system for cuttings injection could be operated in a well while drilling and other well operations were proceeding at the same time.
According to a first aspect of the present invention there is provided an injection spool for use in the injection of a fluid into a wellhead assembly, the wellhead assembly having a central bore therethrough, the injection spool comprising:
an outer housing having a central bore therethrough, the housing having a first end for connection to a wellhead assembly such that the central bore of the housing is aligned with the central bore of the wellhead assembly;
an inner housing having a central bore therethrough, the inner housing being disposed within the central bore in the outer housing, whereby a cavity is formed between the inner housing and the outer housing;
a port in the outer housing having an opening into the cavity between the inner housing and the outer housing;
the inner housing having a portion extending from within the outer housing beyond the first end of the outer housing for forming a cavity within a wellhead assembly to which the injection spool is connected, the cavity thus formed connecting the cavity in the injection spool with an annular cavity defined by adjacent casings present in the wellhead assembly.
The injection spool of the present invention may be installed directly on a subsea wellhead assembly. Once installed, the injection spool provides access to an annular cavity between adjacent casings suspended in the wellhead assembly and extending into the well. In this way, fluids, such as a slurry of drilling cuttings may be injected into the injection spool housing and pumped through the annular cavity between the casings into the underground formations into which the casings extend. Ancillary equipment necessary for injecting fluids into the injection spool, such as isolation valves and a connection for a riser, is connected directly to the port in the outer housing of the injection spool. A guide base is not required in order to carry out the injection operations. Indeed, a guide base need not be present at the wellhead site, unless required for the performance of other duties. The installation and operation of the injection spool of the present invention requires can be accomplished with no modifications to the existing wellhead assembly or to the conventional wellhead assembly components. If modifications to the components of the wellhead assembly are required, such modifications are only very minor.
The outer housing of the injection spool may be connected to the wellhead assembly at its first end by a connector, the design of which is well known in the art for connecting wellhead components. In one preferred embodiment, the connector is formed as an integral part of the first end of the injection spool outer housing. In a preferred arrangement, the connector is arranged for installing the injection spool on the high pressure housing of a subsea wellhead assembly.
The inner housing extends from within the outer housing of the injection spool. The inner housing is preferably formed to connect with a casing within the wellhead assembly onto which the injection spool is installed. Preferably, the connection between the inner housing and the casing within the wellhead assembly is achieved by having the end of the inner housing extending within the wellhead seal against a casing hanger suspending the respective casing in the wellhead assembly.
In a preferred embodiment, the inner housing is a sleeve, separate from the outer housing of the injection spool, secured at a first end within the central bore in the outer housing. A seal is preferably provided around the first end of the sleeve between the sleeve and the outer housing, in order to seal the upper end of the annular cavity with the injection spool. The sleeve functions to isolate the annular cavity within the injection spool from the central bore of the spool. In addition, the sleeve may be arranged to act as a wear bushing for protecting the injection spool and that portion of the wellhead assembly into which the sleeve extends from damage and erosion by drilling tools and other equipment moving through the bore in the injection spool and the wellhead assembly.
The injection spool may be assembled with the sleeve secured in the central bore of the spool prior to the installation of the injection spool on a subsea wellhead. Alternatively, the injection spool may be installed on a subsea wellhead assembly with just the outer housing being put in place, and the sleeve installed thereafter. In such a case, the outer housing is formed in order to allow the sleeve to be landed in and installed in the injection spool when in place on a wellhead assembly. In this arrangement, the inner housing may be formed by a casing installed in and suspended from the injection spool, for example using a conventional casing hanger secured in the central bore of the outer housing of the injection spool.
The injection spool may comprise a second inner housing extending concentrically within the first inner housing. The second inner housing may be arranged as described above with respect to the first inner housing. In this way, an annular cavity is formed between the first and second inner housings, which may be used to connect with a further annular cavity between adjacent casings within the wellhead assembly and the well. In such an arrangement, a further port is provided in the outer housing, to access the annular cavity between the first and second inner housings.
Further inner housings may be provided in a similar manner, in order to access additional annuli between adjacent casings within the wellhead assembly and the well.
With respect to the aforementioned embodiment of the invention in which one or more sleeves are provided, the present invention provides, in a further aspect, a spool for injecting fluids into a cavity in a wellhead assembly on which the spool is installed, the spool comprising:
a spool housing having a central bore therethrough, the spool housing having a first end for connection to a wellhead assembly;
a port in the spool housing having an opening into the central bore of the spool housing;
a retainer, whereby a sleeve may be secured in the central bore of the spool housing at a first end, such that a cavity is formed between the sleeve and the spool housing and the opening of the port in the spool housing communicates with the cavity.
The first end of the spool may comprise a connector for installing the spool on a wellhead assembly. In one embodiment, the connector is for connecting the spool to the high pressure housing of a subsea wellhead assembly.
The retainer may be any form of arrangement for securing the end of a sleeve or casing within the spool, for example a groove or shoulder within the central bore of the spool onto which the sleeve or casing may be landed.
The spool may comprise a second retainer, to which a second sleeve may be secured, thereby forming a further cavity within the spool. A further port is preferably provided to gain access to this further cavity. Additional retainers for further additional sleeves may be provided on a similar basis.
In a further aspect, the present invention provides a wellhead assembly in a well, the wellhead assembly having a central bore therethrough in communication with the well, the wellhead assembly comprising:
a wellhead housing;
a first casing extending into the well;
a second casing extending within the first casing into the well;
an annular cavity defined between the first and second casings, through which access can be gained to a subsurface formation;
an injection spool housing connected at a first end to the wellhead housing and having a central bore therethrough in communication with the central bore of the wellhead assembly;
an inner housing extending from within the central bore of the injection spool housing into the central bore of the wellhead housing;
a first cavity formed between the inner housing and the injection spool housing;
a second cavity formed between the inner housing and the wellhead housing and communicating with the first cavity and the annular cavity between the first and second casings; and
a port in the injection spool housing opening into the first cavity.
One or both of the first and second casings may be supported with the wellhead assembly by means of a casing hanger. If the second casing is supported in such a manner, the casing hanger is preferably provided with one or more ports therethrough, allowing the second cavity to communicate with the annular cavity.
Alternatively, the first casing may be supported with the wellhead housing and the second casing supported below the wellhead housing by means of a casing hanger landing below the housing. In this arrangement, the inner housing extends though the bore of the wellhead housing and interfaces with the casing hanger below the wellhead housing, in the manner described above.
In general, it is to be noted that the wellhead assembly may comprise a plurality of casings, none, some or all of which are supported using casing hangers. The inner housing may be arranged to seal in any of the seal pockets in the wellhead assembly.
The wellhead assembly may also comprise a first inner housing and a second inner housing, arranged concentrically, both of which are secured at their first ends within the outer housing of the injection spool housing, and both of which extend from within the injection spool housing into the wellhead housing to seal at their second ends with respective casings within the wellhead assembly. In this arrangement, a further cavity is formed between the first and second inner housings, which communicates with a further annulus between adjacent casings within the wellhead extending into the well. The innermost housing of the first and second inner housings will interface with and seal with a casing of smaller diameter than the outermost of the two housings. A second port is provided in the injection spool housing to communicate with the further cavity, in the manner as described above. In this way, the injection spool provides access to two annuli extending from the wellhead assembly into the well, allowing access to further underground formations within the well.
In the same manner, a third and further inner housings may be provided, in order to provide access to further annuli within the wellhead assembly and the well.
As noted above, the inner housing may be a sleeve, secured at a first end within the injection spool housing and extending into the wellhead housing. A seal is preferably disposed around the first end of the sleeve in order to seal the end of the first cavity.
As also noted, the second end of the sleeve preferably connects to the second casing within the wellhead housing, in particular by contacting the casing hanger supporting the second casing within the wellhead assembly.
The sleeve preferably serves as a wear bushing, protecting the central bore of the injection spool housing and the wellhead housing from wear and erosion caused by the passage of drilling tools and other equipment through the wellhead assembly into and out of the well.
A cuttings riser interface assembly is preferably connected to the port in the injection spool housing, allowing a cuttings injection riser to be extended from a surface vessel or platform to connect with the injection spool on the wellhead assembly. The cuttings riser interface assembly preferably comprises a valve for isolating the first cavity from the exterior of the wellhead assembly.
According to a still further aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method for injecting drilling cuttings into an underground formation through a wellhead assembly having a central bore therethrough situated on a well in the formation, the method comprising:
providing an injection spool installed on the wellhead assembly, the injection spool having a central bore therethrough in communication with the central bore in the wellhead assembly;
providing a first cavity within the injection spool, while maintaining the central bore therethrough open;
providing a second cavity within the wellhead assembly in communication with the first cavity and an annular cavity between two adjacent casings extending from the wellhead assembly into the underground formation;
providing a port in the injection spool in communication with the first cavity; and
injecting a slurry of the drilling cuttings through the port in the injection spool into the first cavity.
It is an advantage of the injection spool of the present invention that the central bore therethrough remains open while the injection of cuttings into the well takes place, in turn allowing access to the bore of the wellhead assembly and the well below. Accordingly, the cuttings injection method of the present invention may be operated while other well operations are being carried out in the wellhead assembly and the well. In particular, the injections of cuttings may be carried out while further drilling of the well is taking place.
Specific embodiments of the apparatus and method of the present invention will now be described in detail having reference to the accompanying drawings. The detailed description of these embodiments and the referenced drawings are by way of example only and are not intended to limit the scope of the present invention.